The National Police

Since 1945 Indonesia's National Police organization has
been
a national force, financed, directed, and organized by the
central government. The strength of the national police
force in
1992 was around 180,000. Its main duties were to maintain
public
order and security. Like the other armed services, the
police
considered themselves to be a social force active in
national
development, and therefore they participated in the armed
services' civic missions.

The commander bore the title of police chief and was
the
highest ranking uniformed police officer in the nation. He
was
assisted by a deputy police chief. Police headquarters in
Jakarta
included a staff and several separate administrative
bodies that
handled specialized police functions. The police had its
own
territorial organization made up of seventeen
jurisdictions, each
of which was known as a Police Regional Command (Polda).
Each
Polda was administratively subdivided at the district,
subdistrict, and village level. Polda Metrojaya, which had
responsibility for the metropolitan Jakarta area, was
subdivided
into precincts, sections, and police posts. It was
commonly
referred to as the Jakarta Raya Metropolitan Regional
Police.

Each Polda had its headquarters in a provincial capital
and
was assigned police units varying in strength and
composition
according to the needs dictated by the characteristics of
the
area. These forces were organized as city police forces or
rural
units and were under the operational command of the Polda
commander, who in turn was directly responsible to
national
police headquarters. All police elements were charged with
supporting the local government in their areas.

Functionally, the police were organized into a number
of
specialized elements. The largest of these was the
uniformed
police, which included both the general police, who
performed
conventional police duties relating to the control and
prevention
of crime and protection of property, and the traffic
police, who
patrolled the nation's roadways and supervised the
licensing of
drivers and the registration of motor vehicles. Also part
of the
uniformed force were the women police, who specialized in
social
matters and the welfare of women and children. Elite units
of
special police were employed to enforce order in terrorist
situations beyond the capability of the regular forces.
These
units were better armed and more mobile than the general
police
and lived in separate barracks under more rigid
discipline. These
police wore the same uniform as other police but were
distinguished by special badges.

A small unit of Sea and Air Police patrolled the
national
waters and airspace, providing tactical aid to other
elements by
regulating traffic, guarding against smuggling and the
theft of
fish, and supplying transport. The unit was also active in
disaster relief. Its equipment included a few helicopters
and
light airplanes and various small seacraft.

Plainclothes police were assigned primary
responsibility for
criminal investigations, especially in complex cases or in
cases
involving several jurisdictions. They also handled
forensics,
intelligence, security, and the technical aspects of crime
fighting, such as fingerprinting and identification.

One of the oldest National Police units was the Mobile
Brigade, formed in late 1945. It was originally assigned
the
tasks of disarming remnants of the Japanese Imperial Army
and
protecting the chief of state and the capital city. It
fought in
the revolution, and its troops took part in the military
confrontation with Malaysia in the early 1960s and in the
conflict in East Timor in the mid-1970s. In 1981 the
Mobile
Brigade spawned a new unit called the Explosive Ordnance
Devices
Unit.

In 1992 the Mobile Brigade was essentially a
paramilitary
organization trained and organized on military lines. It
had a
strength of about 12,000. The brigade was used primarily
as an
elite corps for emergencies, aiding in police operations
that
required units to take quick action. The unit was employed
in
domestic security and defense operations and was issued
special
riot-control equipment. Elements of the force were also
trained
for airborne operations.

Police recruits were volunteers. Applicants were
required to
have at least a sixth-grade education and to pass a
competitive
examination. Other qualifications included physical
fitness and
good moral character. After three years' service as
ordinary
police, personnel with junior secondary-school diplomas
could
enter training to become NCOs. Those with three years'
experience
as NCOs were eligible for further training to enable them
to
become candidate officers and eventually enter the officer
corps.
Most higher ranking officers entered the force as
graduates of
the Police Division of Akabri.

Advanced training in vocational and technical subjects
was
available for regular police, for NCOs, and for officers.
Promotions were often based on performance in advanced
education.
The Police Command and Staff School offered advanced
training to
police officers assigned to command units at the
subdistrict,
district, and Polda level. Training there focused on
administration and logistics.

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